Oman, ready to hire, says a survey

Muscat: A survey conducted in the region, including Oman, reveals that nearly two thirds of employers in the Middle East plan to hire this year.
The latest Middle East Job Index Survey, compiled by the Middle East’s leading job site, Bayt.com, and research and consulting group, YouGov, reveals that nearly 65 per cent in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) are planning to hire this year.
According to a Bayt.com and YouGov Survey, organisations in the hospitality, recreation and entertainment industry have the highest hiring intention in the next three and next 12 months.
“Within the next three months, more than half (51 per cent) of Middle East and North Africa (MENA) employers say that they are “definitely” or “probably” going to hire,” the survey says.
Among the MENA companies that plan to hire within the next three months, 41 per cent are going to hire for “Junior Executive” roles, followed by 27 per cent who intend to hire a “Coordinator,” and 26 per cent who intend to hire a “Manager.”
Most respondents in MENA also said they are looking to hire “Sales Executives” (18 per cent), while 15 per cent said they want to hire ”Accountants” and “Sales Managers”.
When looking at which industries are hiring in the MENA region over the next three months, more than two thirds (67 per cent) of organisations in the hospitality, recreation, entertainment industry and human resources industry are planning to hire, making them the industries with the highest hiring potential.
This is followed closely by organisations in business consultancy, business management industries (57 per cent).
Private sector companies have the highest intention to hire in the next three months, with 54 per cent of large local companies, 52 per cent of multinational companies and 51 per cent of other private sector companies, ‘definitely’ or ‘probably’ hiring.
Looking at future hiring expectations, 65 per cent of employers in MENA claim that they intend to hire in a year’s time.
Private-sector companies continue to have the highest hiring intentions in a year’s time, with 69 per cent of large local companies, 69 per cent of other private sector companies, and 68 per cent of multinational companies saying that they will be ‘definitely hiring’ or ‘probably hiring’.
From those surveyed, 72 per cent of MENA respondents claim that their company has hired new employees in the past 12 months.
“The hiring forecast for the MENA region is looking promising, with 65 per cent of MENA employers planning to hire this hire,” said Suhail Masri, VP of Employer Solutions, Bayt.com.
“It is also worth mentioning that 41 per cent of those planning to hire predict having at least five vacancies to fill in the next three months. These responses come as no surprise to us: there are currently more than 10,000 jobs posted on Bayt.com. We will continue to work closely with the region’s employers to help them find their talent. We will also continue empowering and supporting job seekers who are going to make use of these new and exciting job vacancies,” he added.
In terms of academic qualification, a large number of MENA employers are looking for “Engineering” Graduates and Post Graduates (30 per cent) followed by “Business Management” (28 per cent) and “Commerce” (21 per cent).
When it comes to skills in high demand, more than two thirds (68 per cent) of employers in MENA are looking for employees with “good communication skills in both English and Arabic”, and over half (51 per cent) are looking for “team players, cooperative, helpful and flexible” candidates.
In terms of experience, 36 per cent of MENA employers are looking for candidates with “managerial experience”, 30 per cent are looking for “mid-level (3 to 7 years)”, and another 29 per cent are looking for candidates with “sales and marketing experience”.
Data for the survey was collected online between December 4, 2016 and January 22, 2017.
The results are based on a sample of 3,107 online interviews conducted with respondents from Oman, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, and Pakistan.